TY - JOUR
T1 - Mobility Device Use and Mobility Disability in U.S. Medicare Beneficiaries With and Without Cancer History
AU - Bluethmann, Shirley M.
AU - Flores, Eileen
AU - Campbell, Grace
AU - Klepin, Heidi D.
N1 - Funding Information:
NHATS is sponsored by National Institute on Aging (NIA) Grant No. U01AG32947 and was conducted by the Johns Hopkins University. Shirley M. Bluethmann is supported by a Mentored Research Scholar Grant in Applied and Clinical Research, No. MSRG-18-136-01-CPPB, from the American Cancer Society (ACS). She is also funded by a Junior Faculty Development Support Grant through the Penn State CTSI (No. NIH UL1 TR002014). Eileen Flores is supported by a graduate assistantship in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the Penn State College of Medicine. Heidi D. Klepin is supported by the NIA of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under Award No. R33AG059206. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH or the ACS. The authors have declared no conflicts of interest for this article. Conceptualization, design, analysis, and writing of the manuscript: Bluethmann. Assisted with analysis and data management: Flores. Assisted in interpreting data and writing the manuscript: Campbell, Flores, and Klepin. Provided critical clinical expertise in geriatrics and geriatric oncology: Klepin.
Funding Information:
NHATS is sponsored by National Institute on Aging (NIA) Grant No. U01AG32947 and was conducted by the Johns Hopkins University. Shirley M. Bluethmann is supported by a Mentored Research Scholar Grant in Applied and Clinical Research, No. MSRG‐18‐136‐01‐CPPB, from the American Cancer Society (ACS). She is also funded by a Junior Faculty Development Support Grant through the Penn State CTSI (No. NIH UL1 TR002014). Eileen Flores is supported by a graduate assistantship in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the Penn State College of Medicine. Heidi D. Klepin is supported by the NIA of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under Award No. R33AG059206. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH or the ACS.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 The American Geriatrics Society
PY - 2020/12
Y1 - 2020/12
N2 - BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: To examine the prevalence of mobility device use in U.S. community-dwelling older adults including older adults with cancer history (“survivors”) and to estimate mobility disability noting variation by cancer history, cancer site, and other factors to improve early detection of mobility limitations. DESIGN: Cross-sectional analysis from the 2011 National Health and Aging Trends Study. SETTING: In-person interviews in the homes of study participants. PARTICIPANTS: Nationally representative sample of community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries, aged 65 and older (n = 6,080 including 1,203 survivors). MEASUREMENTS: Participants were asked about cancer history, pain that limited activity, mobility device use (eg, canes, walkers, wheelchairs, and scooters), history of falls, and medical conditions plus they were assessed for approximate mobility disability using a 3-m gait speed test. The results were scored on a scale of 0 to 4 (0 = lowest, 4 = highest) using criteria from the National Institute on Aging. RESULTS: A total of 19% of older adults and 23% of survivors reported using one or more mobility device, most commonly a single-point cane. Approximately 10% of breast, 6% of prostate, and 3% of colorectal cancer survivors reported using two or more devices in the past month. Survivors had lower mean gait speed scores (2.27) than adults without cancer history (2.39). In regression models, survivors were 18% less likely than adults without cancer history to score high on the gait speed test (odds ratio =.82; P <.05). Prior mobility device use, history of multiple falls, unhealthy weight, Black race, multimorbidity, and pain that limited activity were associated with lower gait speed scores in all participants (all P <.05). CONCLUSION: A greater proportion of older survivors used mobility devices than adults without cancer history. Mobility device use varied by cancer site and was highest in survivors of breast, colorectal, and gynecological cancer. Survivors were also more likely to show signs of mobility disability, based on gait speed, compared with adults without cancer history. These indications, although modest, suggest that older survivors may require special attention to functional changes in survivorship.
AB - BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: To examine the prevalence of mobility device use in U.S. community-dwelling older adults including older adults with cancer history (“survivors”) and to estimate mobility disability noting variation by cancer history, cancer site, and other factors to improve early detection of mobility limitations. DESIGN: Cross-sectional analysis from the 2011 National Health and Aging Trends Study. SETTING: In-person interviews in the homes of study participants. PARTICIPANTS: Nationally representative sample of community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries, aged 65 and older (n = 6,080 including 1,203 survivors). MEASUREMENTS: Participants were asked about cancer history, pain that limited activity, mobility device use (eg, canes, walkers, wheelchairs, and scooters), history of falls, and medical conditions plus they were assessed for approximate mobility disability using a 3-m gait speed test. The results were scored on a scale of 0 to 4 (0 = lowest, 4 = highest) using criteria from the National Institute on Aging. RESULTS: A total of 19% of older adults and 23% of survivors reported using one or more mobility device, most commonly a single-point cane. Approximately 10% of breast, 6% of prostate, and 3% of colorectal cancer survivors reported using two or more devices in the past month. Survivors had lower mean gait speed scores (2.27) than adults without cancer history (2.39). In regression models, survivors were 18% less likely than adults without cancer history to score high on the gait speed test (odds ratio =.82; P <.05). Prior mobility device use, history of multiple falls, unhealthy weight, Black race, multimorbidity, and pain that limited activity were associated with lower gait speed scores in all participants (all P <.05). CONCLUSION: A greater proportion of older survivors used mobility devices than adults without cancer history. Mobility device use varied by cancer site and was highest in survivors of breast, colorectal, and gynecological cancer. Survivors were also more likely to show signs of mobility disability, based on gait speed, compared with adults without cancer history. These indications, although modest, suggest that older survivors may require special attention to functional changes in survivorship.
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U2 - 10.1111/jgs.16789
DO - 10.1111/jgs.16789
M3 - Article
C2 - 32971567
AN - SCOPUS:85091362729
SN - 0002-8614
VL - 68
SP - 2872
EP - 2880
JO - Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
JF - Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
IS - 12
ER -
